The Detroit Lions have become one of the NFL’s best stories, emerging as contenders in recent years under respected head coach Dan Campbell.
However, with their recent success—including two NFC North titles and a 2023 conference championship appearance—comes heightened expectations. According to Mike Payton of A to Z Sports, Detroit failed to meet those expectations on the offensive line by allowing guard Kevin Zeitler to leave in free agency.
“This was the one guy the Lions needed to make sure they kept to keep the offensive line playing at a top level,” Payton wrote on Friday, March 14, giving the decision an “F” grade. “They couldn’t do it. You can’t blame them too much because he wanted to be with family, but maybe you up the offer to keep him here?”
Zeitler, a Pro Bowler with the Baltimore Ravens in 2023, started 16 of 17 regular-season games at right guard next to Penei Sewell for the Lions last year. Though he wasn’t a Pro Bowler in 2024, Pro Football Focus (PFF) ranked him as the fifth-best offensive guard in the league that season, evaluating 135 qualifying players at the position.
As a pass blocker, Zeitler was above average, ranking 32nd overall. But as a run blocker, he was elite, earning PFF’s third-highest grade among all guards in that category across the NFL.
Zeitler signed with the Tennessee Titans, where he will play in 2025 at 35 years old. Despite his age, he remains one of the league’s most durable players, having played at least 15 games in all but two of his 13 NFL seasons.
The two years he fell short of that mark (2013, 2014), Zeitler still appeared in 12 games each time. Additionally, he has started 197 of 198 career regular-season games since entering the league.
Now, the Lions must find a replacement for Zeitler on an offensive line that PFF ranked fourth in the NFL last season—trailing only the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (playoff team), Denver Broncos (playoff team), and Philadelphia Eagles (Super Bowl champions).
